The BCCI has announced the 2025 IPL will be postponed for one week in response to the escalating military tensions between India and Pakistan. Here's what the implications of that suspension, and any potential further postponement, could be for English cricket.
The speed with which the conflict has escalated following last month's terror attack in India-controlled Kashmir means the cricketing situation is rapidly changing. Yesterday (May 8), Punjab Kings match against Delhi Capitals in Dharamshala was cancelled after 10.1 overs when the stadium floodlights went out. It was announced today that the tournament, which has only two weeks left to run, will be suspended for a week.
The uncertainty of the situation means there are several possible outcomes for the rest of the tournament. While it's possible it could resume next week as the current statement suggests, there is also precedent for the tournament being moved out of India. The 2021 IPL was moved to the UAE halfway through after rising Covid cases in India. The announcement of the suspension that year also came in early May, and the remaining matches were played in September and October.
Will overseas players return home?
The most obvious implication the tournament's suspension will have for overseas players is their return home. Jos Buttler, Jacob Bethell, Moeen Ali, Phil Salt, Jofra Archer, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Jamie Overton, Will Jacks, and Reece Topley are the English players currently with IPL teams in India.
With the tournament currently set to resume next week, that makes their decision as to whether to stay in the country more complicated. The UK government currently advises against all travel within 10km of the India-Pakistan border and all but essential travel to the regions of Jammu and Kashmir, and Manipur. Players may choose to remain with their franchises until further updates are given on the tournament's resumption, although it was reported after postponement of the PSL that the seven English players involved were split in opinion over whether to stay.
If the IPL is suspended further, those players will return home, and will likely be available to play for their counties. In that scenario, there is also potential for Jacob Bethell to be available for England's Test match against Zimbabwe later this month.
An influx of overseas players to the County Championship?
In the event that the tournament is suspended further, there's also potential for a host of county overseas signings. The World Test Championship final will take place at Lord's in the second week of June between Australia and South Africa. For players likely to be involved in the clash currently with IPL franchises, the break in the tournament could offer an opportunity to get a couple of red-ball games in before the marquee match.
A potentially more significant influx of county signings, however, could come from India players ahead of this summer's five-match Test series in England. There is a month's break in the County Championship from the end of May to the end of June, and the first Test match of the series begins on July 2. An uninterrupted IPL, or one that resumes next week, would mean India players involved in that Test series would not have an opportunity to prepare with some county cricket. However, if the tournament is suspended further, there are two rounds of fixtures remaining in May after the one beginning today, and one at the end of June that they could feasibly play in if some quick deals are made.
Surrey previously signed Virat Kohli ahead of the 2018 Test series between England and India, but the deal was called off after the then-captain sustained a neck injury. There's also potential for county signings lost to IPL call-ups to return. Shardul Thakur signed with Essex ahead of the summer for their first seven County Championship matches. His call-up to Lucknow Super Giants to replace Mohsin Khan, however, put paid to that deal.
Could a new IPL schedule cause a calendar clash?
If the tournament resumes next week, the calendar will operate as normal with little likely effect on player availability. The most at-risk series in that regard is England's white-ball series against West Indies, which will clash with the end of the tournament if it's delayed by a week.
However, if the tournament is further postponed to resume later in the year, as it was in 2021, the calendar could become more complicated. A reschedule to later in the summer could threaten both player-availability for international fixtures and The Hundred. The Hundred will end on August 31, meaning any resumption of the IPL in August could result in marquee overseas and England players opting out in order to fulfill their IPL contracts. There is also an England white-ball series against South Africa set to begin on September 2, which could again potentially be complicated by an IPL reschedule affecting the availability of a core group of players involved in that series.
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